April 23, 2013

CCHR— A new report from the The Partnership at Drugfree.org found teens in the United States are in the throes of a prescription drug abuse crisis with a new survey showing 24 percent of high school students (5 million kids) are “abusing” drugs like Ritalin  and Adderall.

The study also found that teens think drugs like Ritalin and Adderall are safer than street drugs which is patently false.  But is it any wonder teens have come to this highly erroneous conclusion when they routinely witness these drugs being marketed and prescribed to 5-year-olds? Logic would dictate they can’t possibly be dangerous if prescribed to such young children,  yet the  U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) classifies ADHD drugs in the same class of highly addictive substances as cocaine, morphine and opium with the highest potential for abuse—no matter who takes them or at what age or in what dosage.

Moreover, there are 31 drug regulatory agency warnings issued from eight countries on ADHD drugs causing drug addiction, drug abuse, heart attack, stroke, mania, psychosis, hallucinations, violence and more.  The real issue isn’t the fact that teens are  ‘misusing’ these drugs,  or whether teens using them haven’t been formally ‘diagnosed’ with ADHD, considering such diagnosis is only made upon a checklist of behaviors (there is no medical test that can prove any child suffers from a biological brain condition of ADHD).   The real issue is where did teens get the idea that ADHD drugs are safer than street drugs. The answer to that question is simple—from the marketing they see every day on TV, on the internet and in their schools – falsely promoting ADHD as a “medical condition” and drugs as “medicine.”   For more information read About Mental Disorders—Parents Know Your Rights

From FOX NEWS – More teens abusing Adderall and Ritalin

The United States appears to be in the throes of a prescription drug abuse crisis among teens, with a new survey showing that 24 percent of high school students — more than 5 million kids — have abused these medications.

That’s a 33 percent increase from 2008, the survey authors noted. They said that 13 percent of teens acknowledged having experimented at least once with either Ritalin or Adderall (normally prescribed for the treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD) that was not prescribed for them.

What’s more, 20 percent of teens who admit they have abused prescription drugs said their first experience doing so was before the age of 14, with 27 percent mistakenly believing that prescription drug abuse is safer than “street drugs,” such as cocaine or ecstasy.

Compounding the problem: The parents surveyed seemed to share in this misperception, with almost one-third buying into the notion that Ritalin or Adderall can boost a child’s school performance even if the child is not diagnosed with ADHD.

The findings stem from a nationally representative poll launched in 2012 by The Partnership at Drugfree.org, in conjunction with the MetLife Foundation. The survey involved nearly 3,900 teens currently enrolled in grades 9 through 12 at public, private and parochial schools, along with more than 800 parents who participated in at-home interviews.

“From my perspective, one way to look at this is that we’ve got a real public health crisis,” said Steve Pasierb, president and CEO at the Partnership organization. “And it’s not getting better. In fact, it’s getting deeper and more complex,” he said.

“The key here is that kids and often their parents are buying into the myth and misunderstanding that prescription drug abuse is a safer way to get high, a safer alternative to street drugs, and that they can control it,” Pasierb continued. “And it’s very important to note that, on this, kids and parents are in the same place. Kids say that they don’t think that their parents are going to be upset if they know about this, and parents are essentially saying the same thing,” he pointed out.

“Now, if cocaine or heroin use was going up the way prescription drug use is parents would certainly be freaking out,” Pasierb added. “And they should be now, because prescription drug abuse is no better.”

Among the findings: one-third of teens think there’s nothing particularly wrong with the notion of using prescription medications that were never prescribed for them to tackle a specific injury or illness, with almost one-quarter believing that their parents are more concerned about street drug use than the misuse of prescription drugs.